I 


Lai  Baghy  Lucknow,  India 


Opened  as  a one-room  schoolhouse  in  1870.  Advanced 
to  High  School  grade,  1884.  affiliated  as  a College  of  the 
University  of  Allahabad,  through  the  B.  A.  Course,  1886. 


On  the  great  Gangetic  Plain  of  North  India,  on  the 
high  road  of  the  old  Mohammedan  conquests,  there  lies 
Lucknow,  a city  of  300,000,  which  was  the  capital  of  the 
last  independent  kingdom  of  the  Moghul  Empire,  be- 
fore the  Sepoy  Mutiny  and  the  British  annexation  of 
1856-1857.  The  Lord  Treasurer  of  this  Kingdom  lived 
on  an  estate  in  Lucknow  known  as  Lai  Bagh,  literally, 
Ruby  Garden  or  Treasure  Garden,  since  a ruby,  usually 
of  extraordinary  value,  is  characteristic  of  buried  treas- 
ure in  India.  Shortly  after  the  Mutiny  the  property  was 
purchased  from  a member  of  the  Treasurer’s  family  by 
an  American  missionary,  Isabella  Thoburn,  who  has 
since  been  recognized  as  the  pioneer  of  women’s  educa- 
tion in  the  Orient.  Under  Isabella  Thoburn,  Lai  Bagh 
became  Treasure  Ground  for  the  Kingdom  of  God  in 
India.  It  is  the  story  of  this  latter  period  of  its  history 
that  this  little  books  tells. 


This  booklet  is  one  of  a series  of  seven 
describing  the  Women’s  Union  Christian 
Colleges  in  the  Orient  and  published  by  the 
Joint  Committee  on  these  colleges.  The 
ten  cooperating  Women’s  Boards  of  For- 
eign Missions  in  America  provide  the  main- 
tenance but  are  unable  to  secure  land  and 
buildings  which  rapid  growth  has  made 
necessary.  All  are  in  temporary  crowded 
quarters. 

The  Trustees  of  the  Laura  Spelman 
Rockefeller  Memorial  Fund  have  promised 
approximately  a million  dollars  toward  the 
three  millions  required.  This  conditional 
pledge  must  be  met  before  January  1,  1923. 
If  the  story  of  this  adventure  in  Interna- 
tional Friendship  and  the  appeal  for  aid 
seem  important  to  you  will  you  not  send 
your  check  or  pledge  to  the  Assistant  Treas- 
urer of  the  Joint  Committee,  Miss  Hilda 
L.  Olson,  300  Ford  Building,  Boston,  Mass., 
or  to  the  Treasurer  of  your  own  Woman’s 
Board  of  Foreign  Missions,  designating  a 
special  college  or  building  if  you  desire. 


Joint  Committee  on  Women’s  Union  Christian  Colleges 
the  Orient — 1921 


Lai  Bagh,  Lucknow 

India 


The  Palm  Song 

{Selected  Lines) 

We  linger  in  the  twilight  shade 
And  plant  for  years  to  be 
This  palm  beloved  of  India’s  soil, 
Our  Class  Memorial  Tree. 

Clasp  to  thy  bosom,  Mother  Earth, 
And  take  it  to  thy  care. 

Yield  to  its  tenderness  we  pray. 
Thy  bounties  rich  and  rare. 

Above  its  graceful,  waving  crown 
Let  wholesome  breezes  play. 

And  let  thy  sunshine  gloss  its  leaves 
With  every  passing  day. 

For  like  the  palm  we  too  aspire 
For  India’s  weal  to  live. 

And  of  all  good  that  comes  to  us. 

As  we  receive  to  give. 


A REPRESENTATIVE  OF  INDIA’S  WOMANHOOD 

Miss  Lllavati  Singh,  M.  A.,  Acting  President  of  the  Isabella  Thohurn  College, 
who  died  in  Chicago  in  1909  after  thirty-one  years  of  association  with  the  col- 
lege as  teacher  and  pupil.  A native  of  India  hut  a master  of  the  English  lan- 
guage, she  was  the  first  woman  to  sit  on  a world  committee,  having  been  presi- 
dent of  the  Woman’s  Section  of  the  World  Student  Christian  Federation.  In 
this  capacity  she  lectured  in  Japan,  in  various  countries  of  Western  Europe  and 
in  the  United  States.  (See  Page  11.) 


Yesterday 


Today 


Tomorrow! 


/ 

ESTERDAY— 1870  TO  1920.  The  Isabella  Tho- 
burn  College  can  look  back  on  a half  century  of 
growth,  for  although  its  affiliation  as  a college 
dates  only  from  1886,  it  is  the  outgrowth  of  a 
school  which  was  opened  sixteen  years  before  in  a mud-walled 
room  in  a bazar  of  Lucknow,  when  Miss  Thoburn  gathered 
together  six  children  for  her  first  experiment  in  organizing  a 
school  in  India.  One  class  was  added  to  another,  and  soon  a 
boarding  department  became  a necessity.  After  several  make- 
shifts Miss  Thoburn  purchased  for  $10,000.00  the  nine-acre 
estate  known  as  Lai  Bagh,  which  has  been  the  home  of  the 
school  and  college  ever  since.  The  poorly  planned  residence 
of  the  Lord  Treasurer,  who  had  lived  on  this  estate,  was  re- 
modeled and  added  to  from  time  to  time  till  a beautiful  build- 
ing, suitable  for  college  purposes,  began  to  emerge.  Over- 
crowding, however,  led  to  the  erection  in  1910  of  the  Hazzard 
Memorial  Building,  with  accommodations  for  lecture  rooms 
and  science  laboratories,  a large  study  hall,  and,  at  one  end,  a 
dormitory  with  accommodations  for  thirty  students.  This 
building  immediately  became  greatly  beloved  by  the  students 
and  though  very  quickly  outgrown,  it  was  a sad  loss  and  a 
veritable  shock  to  all  when  in  September  of  1915,  it  collapsed 
during  a cloudburst  and  flood.  Verandahs,  bedrooms,  and 
even  corners  of  the  garden  and  of  the  roof  terrace,  were  used 
for  classrooms ; the  laboratories  of  the  High  School  were, 
to  mutual  disadvantage,  shared  with  the  College ; dormitory 
space  was  so  limited,  as  was  also  accommodations  for  teach- 
ers, that  a distinct  falling  off  in  enrolment  was  noticeable,  and 
it  was  impossible  to  offer  more  than  a narrow  range  of 
courses. 

But  the  “Lai  Bagh  spirit’’  shone  undimmed,  and  with  face 
forward  eagerly  looked  and  worked  for  a better  day. 

3 


II 


Today — 1920  to  1921.  Lai  Bagh’s  approaching  Jubilee 
(1870-1920)  was  a challenge  to  her  throughout  those 
(lark  and  discouraging  days  of  1915-1919.  Her  kind  and  de- 
voted sponsors  in  America  entered  enthusiastically  into  the 
idea  of  making  the  Jubilee  the  opening  of  a new  era.  A cam- 
paign was  authorized  which,  with  conditional  gifts  from 
Government,  brought  in  some  $100,000.  In  India  there  was 
great  happiness  in  the  effort  to  find  and  purchase  a new  site 
whereon  to  build  the  larger  Lai  Bagh  that  the  times  and  the 
new  conditions  in  India  demanded.  At  this  juncture  a new  op- 
portunity afforded  itself.  The  Government  of  India  decided 
to  organize  a great  University  of  Lucknow,  which  should  be 
“an  Oxford  for  India.”  As  plans  have  developed  the  Isa- 
bella Thoburn  College  has  the  privilege  of  being  the  wom- 
an’s department  of  that  University.  It  is  difficult  to  estimate 
all  that  this  means,  but  one  thing  is  sure, — the  education  of 
women  in  this  great  Province  of  50  million  people  of  North 
India  will  be  moulded  by  the  Christian  ideals  and  the  educa- 
tional policies  of  the  American  missionaries  at  Lai  Bagh, — 
a fact  which  is  as  truly  God’s  service  as  was  the  opening  of 
the  little  bazar  school  in  1870.  This  opportunity  has  led  to 
reconsideration  of  sites  and  plans,  until  now  an  enlargement 
of  the  present  site  and  the  taking  over  by  the  College  of  the 
present  High  School  buildings  seems  the  best  immediate  plan. 
This  will  be  the  “Intermediate  College,”  while  University 
classes  will  be  provided  for  in  connection  with  the  Govern- 
ment University  just  opened  (March,  1921).  With  those 
bright  prospects  Lai  Bagh  has  celebrated  her  jubilee  and  en- 
tered upon  her  second  half  century  confident  that  “He  who 
formed,  will  lead.” 


4 


Ill 


Tomorrow,  if  there  were  not  such  a college  as  Lai 
Bagh,  the  foreshadowings  of  a great  Tomorrow  in  India 
would  demand  its  creation.  It  is  needed: 

(1)  for  training  native  leadership  in  this  age  when  all  India  is  de- 
manding Indian  leadership,  along  all  lines,  and  is  impatient 
of  foreign  control. 

(2)  for  developing  Christian  workers  for  the  multitudes  in  India 
who  are  turning  to  Christianity  and  need  care  and  shepherd- 
ing in  schools  and  in  all  phases  of  daily  life. 

(3)  for  the  education  of  those  who  will  be  the  homemakers  of 
their  country,  that  the  stamp  of  Christianity  may  be  upon  the 
minds  and  lives  of  mothers  and  wives  in  this  New  India. 

(4)  for  moralizing  the  social  life  in  India  which  otherwise  would 
have  the  bias  of  an  increasingly  disproportionate  educated 
male  population. 

(5)  for  demonstrating  the  uplifting  influence  of  Christ  upon  that 
sex  which  has  been  so  disastrously  ignored  and  repressed  in 
India,  and  for  proving  that  the  best  is  none  too  good  for  In- 
dian womanhood.  “Better  women,”  are  the  strongest  factor 
in  the  development  of  a Better  India. 

(6)  for  definitely  distributing  the  ideals  of  Christian  womanhood 
to  all  parts  of  Southern  Asia  from  which  the  College  draws 
its  students.  Personal  witness  to  the  value  of  Christian  edu- 
cation for  women  in  a real  Kingdom  message. 

(7)  for  training  women  to  take  their  part  in  the  new  national  life 
of  awakened  India.  This  rraining  must  be  by  contact  with 
lives  already  devoted  to  Christ,  more  than  by  precept,  for 
“character  is  caught,  not  taught.” 

(8)  for  meeting  the  needs  of  the  more  educated  classes  of  India, 
as  the  evangelistic  and  other  parts  of  mission  work  minister 
specifically  to  the  needs  of  the  masses. 

To  state  these  needs  is  to  indicate  the  place  Lai  Bagh  will 
fill  in  the  future,  for  it  is  evident  to  all  who  know'  and  love 
her,  that  she  enters  the  morrow'  ready  to  serve  the  great  need 
of  the  day — if  her  friends  will  keep  faith  with  her  in  this 
hour  of  far-reaching  impulse  and  endeavor. 


5 


The  Home  Beautiful 

Its  old  vine-covered  gateway,  bespeaking  “Welcome”  and 
“Come  Again.” 

Its  Grass}'  ()val,  around  which  are  flowering  trees,  and  the 
driveway  where  all  Lai  Baghites  love  to  “take  a turn  around 
the  lawn.” 

Its  tennis  and  badminton  courts,  around  which  so  many 
pleasant  gatherings  have  taken  place,  notably  “Tuesday 
Tennis,”  throughout  the  years.  Its  basket  ball  and  all  its 
healthy  recreations. 

Its  old  Kothi  with  its  untold  secrets  of  treasure  and  ro- 
mance, its  new  additions  and  its  manifold  associations. 

The  Clock  Tower,  which  has  pealed  its  lesson  of  punctual- 
ity with  few  intermissions  for  35  years. 

Its  Assembly  Hall  and  Zenana  Gallery  where  gatherings 
grave  and  gay  have  honoured  and  been  honoured  by  it. 

Its  Dining  Room  where  Plain  Living  and  High  Thinking 
have  graced  our  life,  and  where  there  has  been  perennial  Feast 
of  Reason  and  Flow  of  Soul. 

The  Drawing  Room  which  has  been  the  center  of  hundreds 
of  concentric  circles  of  influence  and  activity  which  now 
spread  from  shore  to  shore. 

Its  Taikhana,  with  its  legends  of  Cobras  guarding  the  Bur- 
ied Treasure. 

Its  Hostel,  with  memories  which  lead  us  back  to  Lai  Bagh’s 
infant  days.  The  Hostel  with  its  baby  jewels  and  childish 
happiness,  its  girlhood  beauty  and  youthful  hopes.  The  Hos- 
tel whence  come  peals  of  laughter  that  help  keep  old  age  a 
stranger  to  Lai  Bagh. 

The  School  House,  with  its  message  of  Order  and  Useful- 
ness, Faithfulness  and  Comradeship. 

The  Ruins,  with  their  appeal,  their  memories,  their  chal- 
lenge. 


6 


The  Servants’  Quarters,  with  their  domestic  joys  and  trag- 
edies, and  the  contribution  of  willing  and  good  service. 

The  Home  Beautiful,  with  its  atmosphere  of  simplicity,  love 
and  service. 

Our  Goodly  Heritage  of  faith,  hope  and  love. 

“This  House  for  God" : "That  in  all  things  He  may  have 
the  Pre-eminence.” 

The  “globe-trotter,”  whose  name  is  legion,  and  whose  sur- 
name is  Delightful  as  often  as  it  is  Frightful. 

Our  Friends : “we  greet  them  hand  and  heart.” 

Conferences. — our  liberal  education. 

Our  Motto,  “we  receive  to  give,”  with  its  variations,  grave 
and  gay. 

Ourselves, — a motley  crew,  who  revel  in  bo>i  cameraderie, 
in  scholastic  adventures,  in  the  Research  Magnificent. 


The  parlor  at  Lai  Bagh  where  the  home  life  of  the  college  centers.  Before  the 
purchase  of  the  property  in  1872  it  was  used  as  the  Audience  Room  of  the  Treas- 
urer of  the  Mogul  Kingdom  of  which  Lucknow  is  the  Capital.  Since  then  it  has 
served  as  the  starting  place  of  many  a missionary  enterprise  now  influential  in 
North  India. 


The  College  Curriculum 

The  College  Course  is  a four  years’  Course,  leading,  as  in 
American  colleges,  to  the  B.  A.  degree;  but  it  is  intensive 
rather  than  extensive  and  the  range  of  subjects  offered  is 
narrow  compared  to  that  of  an  American  college.  Hence,  in 
several  cases,  students  who  had  completed  the  course  in  In- 
dia and  who  wished  to  study  further  in  America,  have  found 
it  profitable  to  enter  the  third  year  in  an  American  college, 
even  though  in  some  subjects  (notably  Mathematics)  their 
work  in  India  would  have  been  in  advance  of  third  year  work 
here.  When  we  remember  that  the  student  in  India  takes 
the  whole  course  in  English  which  is  not  her  mother-tongue, 
and  which  is  often  unheard  by  her  except  in  the  college  itself, 
it  is  remarkable  that  she  is  able  to  grasp  her  subject  so  thor- 
oughly. It  is  not  uncommon  for  women  students  to  head  the 
list  of  hundreds  of  successful  candidates  the  large  majority 
of  whom  are  men,  and  it  is  a well-known  fact  that  the  stu- 
dents of  Lai  Bagh  have  a breadth  and  practical  knowledge 
gained  by  the  all-round  education  afforded  by  the  Isabella 
Thoburn  College,  which  the  majority  of  men  students  in  the 
Province  may  well  envy.  While  the  College  has  been  small  in 
numbers,  it  has  never  lowered  scholastic  standards,  and  has 
sought  to  adapt  its  curriculum  to  the  after-college  lives  of  its 
students.  Consequently  its  graduates,  now  scattered  all  over 
Southern  Asia,  have  made  the  name  of  Lai  Bagh  synonymous 
with  scholarship  so  related  to  character  and  service  as  to  give 
the  most  creditable  interpretation  to  the  College  motto,  we 
RECEIVE  TO  GIVE. 


Extra-curricular  Activities 

Aside  from  many  beautiful  traditions  and  occasions  of  sen- 
timent and  fun  and  fellowship,  which  make  for  a uniquely 
delightful  family  life  in  this  diversified  community,  there  are 
numerous  activities  which  are  voluntarily  engaged  in  and 
which  form  a most  important  part  of  training  for  leadership, 
as  well  as  in  developing  esprit  de  corps  among  a body  of 


8 


students  composed  of  many  races  and  several  creeds.  The 
"S’.  W.  C.  A.  is  foremost  in  its  comprehensive  programmes  and 
opportunities  for  initiative  and  usefulness ; the  Students’  Or- 
ganization is  essential  to  the  self-respect  and  orderliness  of 
the  students’  body ; the  City  Sunday  Schools  'which  reach  four 
or  five  hundred  children  in  various  parts  of  the  city  each 
Sabbath,  give  the  taste  for  direct  service  in  the  most  needy 
places  which  later  leads  the  girls  out  into  the  difficult  and 
needy  places  of  India ; the  lectures  which  are  provided  weekly 
bring  to  the  attention  of  the  students  the  subjects  which  are 
engaging  the  world’s  thought ; the  supplementary  courses  in 
music,  hygiene  (with  correlated  physical  exercises).  Girls’ 
Club  organization.  Home  Nursing  and  First  Aid,  all  help  to 
enrich  and  make  resourceful  lives  that  will  inevitably  be 
thrown  on  their  own  resources  very  largely  after  leaving  the 
sheltered  life  of  Lai  Bagh.  There  is  no  part  of  a woman’s 
nature  that  does  not  have  some  opportunity  for  growth  and 
culture  under  the  influences  of  this  Alma  iMater,  and  best  of 
all  is  the  influence  of  personality  in  the  examples  of  conse- 
crated womanhood  which  are  represented  by  Miss  Thoburn 
herself  and  her  associates.  Lives  thus  lighted  will  undoubtedly 
have  a large  share  in  dispelling  the  sombre  darkness  of  India. 


Psychology  Class — Studying  a Model  of  the  Human  Brain 


9 


SARASVATI  SINGH 
Goucher  1910 


Alumnae  as  Pioneers 


Lai  Bagh  Records  Show  the  Following: 


The  first  Kindergarten  in 
India. 

The  first  college  in  India 
with  full  staff  of  women  and 
residence  accommodation. 

The  first  Arya  Samaj  B.  A. 
graduate. 

The  F.  Sc.  graduate  who  be- 
came the  second  woman  with 
the  B.  Sc.  degree  in  India. 

The  F.  Sc.  graduate  who 
later  graduated  at  the  foremost 
Medical  college  in  North  India 
as  the  first  Mohammedan 
woman  Doctor  in  India  and 
probably  in  the  world. 

The  first  woman  B.  A.  and 
the  first  Normal  School  grad- 
uate from  Rajputana. 

The  first  woman  to  receive 
her  M.  A.  in  North  India. 

The  first  Mohammedan  wom- 
an to  take  her  F.  A.  examina- 
tion from  the  Central  Provin- 
ces. 

Probably  the  first  F.  A. 
student  to  take  her  examina- 
tion in  pardah. 

The  first  Teachers  Confer- 
ence (held  annually)  in  India. 

The  first  woman’s  College  to 
offer  the  F.  Sc.  course. 

The  first  college  to  have  on 
its  staff  an  Indian  lady. 


The  first  woman  (Lilavati 
Singh)  from  the  Orient  to 
serve  on  a world’s  Committee. 

The  first  woman  dentist. 

The  first  woman  agricultur- 
ist. 

The  first  woman  in  India  to 
be  in  charge  of  a Boys’  High 
School. 

A Lai  Bagh  graduate  organ- 
ized the  Home  Missionary 
Society  which  has  developed 
into  an  agency  of  great  ser- 
vice to  the  neglected  Anglo- 
Indian  community  scattered 
throughout  India. 

The  Lai  Bagh  student  who 
took  an  agricultural  course  in 
America  is  now  helping  con- 
vert wastes  of  the  Himalaya 
regions  into  fruitful  valleys. 

Miss  Phoebe  Rowe,  an  An- 
glo-Indian who  was  associa- 
ted with  Lai  Bagh  in  Miss 
Thoburn’s  time,  was  a won- 
derful influence  in  the  villages 
of  North  India  and  carried  the 
Christian  message  by  her  beau- 
tiful voice  as  well  as  her  con- 
secrated personality.  She  trav- 
eled in  America,  endearing  In- 
dia to  many  friends  here.  She 
is  one — perhaps  the  most  re- 
markable, however — of  many 
Lai  Bagh  daughters  who  are 
serving  as  evangelists  in  far- 
away pla*'''" 


11 


The  Main  Building 


Lai  Bagh  Girls  on  Ruins  of  the  Building  which  Collapsed  During  the 
Floods  of  1915.  How  they  Rise  from  Disaster! 


Lai  Bagh’s  Foremost  Daughter— 
Lilavati  Singh 

No  one  will  deny  this  title  to  Lilavati  Singh.  The  niis- 
chievious  school-girl  yielding  her  converted  enthusiasms  to 
Christ  for  India,  the  eighteen-year-old  High  School  graduate 
who  in  1886  urged  Miss  Thoburn  to  open  a WMman’s  College ; 
the  ardent  college  student  who  two  years  later  went  to  Cal- 
cutta to  finish  two  more  years  of  work  in  order  to  obtain  the 
B.  A.  degree ; the  young  teacher  in  the  Government  School  at 
Dacca  whose  devotion  to  the  ideal  of  doing'  her  most  and  best 
for  India’s  women  led  her  back  into  distinctly  Christian  serv- 
ice ; the  Christian  College  teacher,  yielding  heart  and  mind 
and  soul  and  strength  to  a service  whose  incense  was  wafted 
the  world  over, — these  are  some  chapters  in  her  life  up  to  her 
thirtieth  year.  Then  she  was  led  out  into  still  larger  spheres. 
As  Chairman  of  the  Woman’s  Department  of  the  World’s 
Christian  Student  Federation,  she  traveled  among  students  in 
Japan,  France,  Holland,  Belgium,  Sweden,  England  and  Amer- 
ica, interpreting  the  call  of  India  to  those  in  more  favored 
countries  and  the  contribution  India  may  be  expected  to  make 
to  the  world’s  ideals  and  activities.  She  endeared  the  woman- 
hood of  India,  personified  in  herself,  to  the  womanhood  of 
America.  Of  her,  an  ex-president  of  the  United  States  said, 
after  hearing  her  speak  to  an  audience  of  10,000  people,  “If 
this  was  the  only  result  of  the  money  spent  on  missions,  she 
would  justify  the  expense !”  But  with  it  all,  her  heart  beat 
true  to  India,  its  simple  needs  and  claims,  and  in  between  her 
two  trips  to  America,  she  made  vital  contributions  in  the  ca- 
pacity of  Associate  Principal,  Professor  of  Philosophy  and 
History,  and  Preceptress  of  the  Boarding  School,  thus  reach- 
ing the  girls  of  all  ages,  from  kindergarten  to  B.  A.  In  the 
meantime  she  took  the  M.  A.  degree  in  Philosophy.  In  1909, 
during  a visit  to  America  with  the  object  of  raising  money  for 
a new  school  Hostel,  she  died,  and  was  buried  in  America  by 
loving  friends  there,  as  Isabella  Thoburn  was  buried  by  In- 
dian friends  in  Lucknow'. 


13 


Alumnae 


A TYPICAL  ILLUSTRATION  OF  THEIR  INFLUENCE 
THE  MESSAGE  OF  A COLLEGE  CAP  AND  GOWN 

A graduate  of  Lai  Bagh  was  living  at  home,  keeping  house 
for  her  widowed  father,  a prominent  ( lovernment  Collector, 
in  a large  town  in  North  India.  She  was  anxious  to  share 
the  opportunities  she  had  had  with  the  women  of  that  city 
who  were  not  only  ignorant  and  superstitious  but  who,  in  so 
many  cases  among  the  high  born,  were  shut  away  in  seclusion 
because  of  the  custom  of  pardah  which  prohibits  women  ap- 
pearing in  ])ublic.  She  asked  her  father’s  help  in  organizing 
a club  for  such  women,  and  his  suggestion  was  to  begin  with 
a gathering  at  their  home  when  every  effort  would  be  made  to 
keep  their  customs  unviolated.  Arrangements  were  made  for 
utter  seclusion  from  men,  and  with  the  promise  of  this  a num- 
ber of  families  consented  to  allow  their  women  to  attend. 
The  father  suggested  to  his  daughter  to  wear  her  college  cap 
and  gown,  and  though  she  felt  it  would  be  rather  inappropri- 
ate among  such  ignorant  women  she  followed  his  advice.  To 
her  surprise,  one  woman  immediately  remarked  on  it  for, 
though  utterly  illiterate  herself,  the  men  of  her  family  were 
well-educated  and  were  possessors  of  college  degrees.  The 
woman  expressed  surprise  that  a cap  and  gown  just  like 
those  her  sons  wore  could  be  worn  by  a woman,  and  there 
was  great  excitement  when  it  was  told  that  it  stood  for  the 
same  learning  as  in  the  case  of  men.  Before  she  knew  it,  our 
college  graduate  was  setting  forth  what  education  had  meant 
to  her,  and  she  had  called  forth  decided  response  from  the 
women  whose  own  lives  had  so  little  in  them,  when  one  crusty 
dame  exclaimed,  “After  all,  what  is  the  use  of  education?  See, 
she  is  not  even  married !’’ 

This  might  have  fallen  as  a damper  on  the  newly  aroused 
enthusiasm  of  the  women,  had  not  the  girl  been  able  to  tell 


14 


them  that  it  so  happened  that  she  was  engaged  to  a young 
college  graduate  who  was  at  that  time  working  to  get  suffi- 
cient money  to  start  a home  with  her,  and  she  hoped  to  make 
her  education  of  practical  use  in  her  home.  She  was  able  inci- 
dentally to  give  a blow  to  the  dowry  system,  which  is  the  cause 
of  so  much  misery  in  Indian  homes,  and  to  uplift  ideals  of  mar- 
ried life.  But  another  woman  sighed,  “That  is  all  very  well  for 
you  to  talk  about,  but  our  children  are  married  so  young, 
what  can  they  do  to  have  such  homes  as  you  speak  of?”  The 
girl  eagerly  replied,  though  she  had  not  meant  to  touch  on 
this  subject  at  the  first  meeting,  that  he  own  grandmother  and 
great  grandmother  had  been  under  just  such  conditions,  but 
that  the  acceptance  of  Christianity  had  brought  with  it  better 
things  for  the  girls  of  the  family,  and  that  was  why  she  had 
the  privileges  she  had.  Thus,  in  that  one  gathering,  she  had 
been  able  to  make  a plea  for  education  of  girls,  for  higher 
marriage  ideals,  for  resistance  to  dowry  and  child-marriage 
customs,  and  for  the  acceptance  of  that  which  opened  the  way 
for  woman’s  greatest  good — the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ.  In 
various  ways,  this  experience  is  being  repeated  wherever  girls 
go  forth  from  the  college.  Can  we  refuse  to  think  of  the  Col- 
lege Cap  and  Gown  as  a missionary  message  when  it  can 
stand  for  such  things  and  convey  such  lessons? 


The  Punjabi  Carol — The  Glee  Club 
15 


Financial  History 

It  was  natural  that  in  the  early  days  of  the  Institution  the 
steps  of  progress  were  so  gradual  that  there  was  little  budget- 
ing, and  appeals  were  made  for  money  only  to  meet  emer- 
gencies or  outstanding  needs.  In  a land  where  female  illitera- 
cy was  more  than  99  per  cent,  a college  had  to  prove  itself 
step  by  step  before  it  would  be  justified  in  taking  any  great 
forward  leap.  At  first  ambition  did  not  soar  beyond  remod- 
eling of  existing  buildings  and  additions  to  them,  but  later 
whole  new  buildings  were  ventured  on,  erected  in  the  form  of 
wings  to  the  original  buildings.  These  were  promptly  out- 
grown as  soon  as  built,  but  except  for  over-crowding  they 
formed  a serviceable  group,  and  the  addition  of  a large  audi- 
ence hall  with  a “zenana  gallery”  provided  with  slit  screens 
for  Indian  ladies  obliged  to  observe  seclusion  in  public,  made 
the  plant  of  use  to  the  community  as  well  as  the  college  fam- 
ily. Up  to  1915  the  purchase  and  erection  of  land  and  build- 
ings had  cost  not  more  than  $100,000,  of  which  the  school  de- 
partment used  at  least  half.  Between  1915  and  the  present 
time  three  special  factors  have  demanded  foresight  and  en- 
ergy in  meeting  the  compelling  needs  of  a future, — the  flood 
of  1915,  which  caused  the  collapse  of  the  Hazzard  [Memorial, 
the  urgent  need  of  providing  more  adequately  for  the  demands 
of  women’s  education,  and  the  opening  of  Lucknow  Univer- 
sity. The  Jubilee  of  Lai  Bagh  served  to  focus  the  attention 
of  friends  in  India  and  America  on  these  parts.  The  present 
effort  for  raising  money  is  the  outgrowth  of  these  facts  and 
it  is  estimated  that  another  $400,000  will  be  necessary  for 
completing  the  plans  relating  to  immediate  need. 

Every  dollar  given  to  work  of  this  kind  means  a positive 
step  toward  the  time  when  India  will  be  able  to  serve  itself, 
for  the  Christianizing  of  India’s  subjugated  womanhood  is  a 
strategic  point  in  her  self-realization  and  in  her  conquest  by 
Christ.  Heretofore  gifts  for  the  Isabella  Thoburn  College 
have  been  chiefly  in  small  amounts,  evincing  tlie  multitude  of 


16 


friends  the  institution  can  call  hers.  But  it  is  not  unreason- 
able to  hope  that  in  these  critical  days  some  one  or  some  few 
may  feel  the  appeal  to  large  gifts  which  shall  allow  the  work 
to  assume  the  form  and  proportions  that  God  is  evidently  ex- 
pecting of  it. 

A parable  told  by  the  Indian  poet,  Rabindranath  Tagore, 
may  help  to  call  forth  the  response  which  the  Giver  of  Good 
Gifts  Himself  can  bless. 

A beggar  sat  by  the  wayside  eagerly  awaiting  the  coming- 
by  of  the  King  whose  royal  route  was  being  heralded  in  ad- 
vance. As  the  procession  drew  near  and  the  royal  coach 
came  into  sight,  the  beggar  held  out  his  hand  to  receive  of  the 
kingly  bounty.  To  his  astonishment,  the  king  leaned  for- 
ward from  the  coach  with  his  hand  outstretched  for  a gift, 
and  the  beggar,  inwardly  resentful,  searched  in  his  wallet  for 
a tiny  kernel  of  grain  which  he  gave  the  king.  Amazed,  an- 
gered, increasingly  resentful,  he  sat  all  day  in  disappointed 
perplexity.  At  night,  when  he  came  to  count  his  gains  of  the 
day,  he  found  in  his  wallet  a tiny  kernel  of  gold.  Then  he 
wished  with  his  whole  heart  that  he  had  given  all  he  had  to 
the  king. 


A Day  in  the  Park 
17 


Interesting  Summaries 

College  and  Normal  School  Alumnae 


Total  Number  Recorded  255 


B.  A.  Graduates 52 

Intermediate  Graduates 141 

Normal  School  Alumnae 99 

Junior  Normal  Alumnae 25 

Teachers 180 

Inspectresses  of  Schools 13 

Doctors  and  Medical  Students 17 

(of  whom  now  practicing  12  and  Dentist  1) 

Agriculturists 1 

Alumnae  who  have  studied  in  advance  of  degree  ob- 
tained of  Lai  Bagh 88 

Studied  Abroad 17 

Alumnae  Married 62 


Religious  and  Church  Denominations:  Episcopal,  86;  Metho- 
dist Episcopal,  67;  Presbyterian,  39;  Roman  Catholic, 
5;  Disciples  of  Christ,  1;  Baptist,  1;  Brahmo  Somaj,  9; 
Hindu,  5;  Mohammedan,  6;  Argo  Somaj,  2. 

Racial  Distribution:  Indian,  115;  Anglo-Indian,  88;  English, 
7;  Eurasian,  5;  American,  2;  Armenian,  2. 

Geographical  Distribution:  Burma,  3;  Straits  Settlement,  3; 
Ceylon,  2;  Persia,  3;  India,  244.  (United  Provinces, 
Panjat,  Bengal,  Bombay,  Central  Provinces,  Central 
India,  Dekkan,  Kashmir,  Assam,  Madras,  Sindh,  Nepal, 
N.  W.  Frontier. 


18 


A Ruined  Building 

at  Isabella  Thoburn  College 

Lucknow 


Caused  by  the  Floods  of  1905 

Who  Will  Replace  It? 


19 


The  Master’s  Garden 


’Tis  the  Master’s  garden  of  beauty  now, 

An  orchard  of  pleasant  fruits ; 

As  He  walks  in  its  shade  at  the  cool  of  day 
With  a voice  of  approval  we  hear  him  say — 
“Blessed  is  she 

Who  trains  these  human  flowers  for  me.” 

Once  it  brought  forth  only  briers  and  thorns, 

No  plant  of  beauty  was  here. 

No  shade  where  the  Master  could  love  to  rest. 
No  roses  to  fasten  upon  His  breast. 

He  turned  His  face 
In  grief  away  from  the  wasted  place. 

Now  He  looks  with  joy  on  the  tender  vines 
.-\nd  blesses  the  gardener’s  care; 

-\nd  His  winds  of  providence  send  abroad 
Over  desolate  waste  and  dusty  road 
A fragrance  rare 

From  his  purchased  garden  of  roses  fair. 

As  He  passes  among  the  beds  of  bloom, 

A touch  of  His  gentle  hand 
Breaks  now  and  again  from  the  parent  stem 
From  among  the  buds  the  fairest  of  them — 

But  not  to  die, 

His  touch  Efiveth  life  eternally. 

-\wake  O ! thou  north  wind,  and  come  thou  south, 

For  lo ! the  winter  is  past. 

-\wake  ye,  and  over  His  garden  blow 
That  the  spices  thereof  may  outward  flow, 

.■\nd  fruit  most  sweet 
Be  found  when  the  Master  comes  to  eat. 

’Tis  blessed  to  work  in  thy  garden.  Lord, 

Give  even  to  me  a share ! 

When  thou  comest  in  at  the  close  of  day 
May  the  word  be  for  me,  when  thou  shalt  say, 
“Blessed  is  she 

Who  trains  these  human  flowers  for  me.” 

E.  J.  K. 

Newark,  N.  J. 


20 


COOPERATING  BOARDS 
Methodist  Episcopal 
Presbyterian  U.  S.  A. 


Isabella  Thoburn  College 


From  our  gateways  have  gone  forth : 

179  High  School  Students  who  have  taken  the  College  Entrance 
Course. 

99  Students  who  have  taken  the  Teacher  Training  Course. 

141  Students  who  have  taken  the  Intermediate  College  Course. 
60  Students  who  have  taken  the  Bachelor  of  Arts  Course. 

And  this  is  what  these  students  have 
later  done: 

228  Became  teachers  (149  of  them  in  Mission  Schools). 

5 Became  evangelists. 

18  Became  doctors. 

95  Entered  homes  of  their  own. 

114  Entered  upon  further  study  (14  abroad). 


